by Marty Proctor
“I make a motion to terminate the City Manager’s contract effective today,” moved Mayor Mike Sykes. At the regular City Council meeting on July 7, the City Council of Mascotte voted 3-2 to terminate the contract of their City Manager. The termination is effective immediately with the City Manager being put on paid suspension pending an appeal hearing request. The Council also scheduled a meeting for July 21 at 6:30 PM to hear that appeal should one be requested. Jim Gleason has been the City Manager of Mascotte since June of 2011.
The vote was 3-2 in favor of termination. Councilpersons Sally Rayman and Louise Thompson voted against termination. Mayor Sykes, Mayor Pro Tem Sheffield and Brenda Brasher voted for termination. The Council had voted earlier to amend the City Code deleting a section where a supermajority of 4-1 was required to terminate. That chapter of code was deemed to be inconsistent with the citizen approved City Charter. That move opened the door for the immediate termination motion.
Several of the Council members shared their last-minute opinions about the situation, the termination, and the contract itself. Councilperson Rayman expressed her disappointment questioning the Mayor about the length of his residence, the number of meetings attended, and the press for such rapid change. He replied 2-½ years and the exact number of meetings. Stating further that he ran for office because the citizens he knew had asked him to run and to implement change. Councilperson Rayman also questioned, “do you know how much this change is going to cost the city?”
Mayor Pro Tem Sheffield who cast the deciding vote stated that these last several weeks had been the most difficult in his years on City Council. He also expressed displeasure that during the 3 weeks since the last long and emotionally charged meeting about the City Manager he had not received a single email from a resident. He also stated that the contract itself needed significant review and change. He pointed specifically to the lack of disciplinary procedures and suggested something consistent with the process used for other city employees. He also expressed dismay about the automatic renewal clause where the City must give 45 days advance notice to prevent automatic renewal of the city manager contract. This missed detail resulted in the Council being forced to terminate rather than not renew. The termination triggers delays and costs to the City including severance pay, paid suspension, and other salary-related costs.
The Assistant City Manager Dolly Miller was asked to fulfill the role of Interim City Manager during the paid suspension and search for a replacement for Mr. Gleason. She accepted that role.
The meeting was sparsely attended both in person and online. It did appear that most of the issues, comments, and personal and professional challenges had been voiced at the earlier meetings. The rest of the business on the agenda was handled quickly and the meeting adjourned at 7:30 pm.
